5 intimate weddings in Old Marylebone Town Hall
Romantic, stylish and just perfect for photos- is Old Marylebone Town Hall the perfect London wedding venue?
Finding your dream wedding venue in London is like trying to find a diamond needle in an uber-trendy haystack. So how on earth do you find the one?! That one venue that speaks to you as a couple, allows you to have your day your way, and still gives you that ever-elusive, quintessentially London experience? Well, look no further. Because Old Marylebone Town Hall is the venue that has it all!
With beautiful architecture and an achingly romantic atmosphere, the town hall gives you the chance to have a genuinely intimate, heartfelt ceremony. And as it’s nestled in one of the most photogenic, varied, stylish areas of London, as soon as you step outside, the city is your playground! I mean, you really have hit the jackpot with this place!
But I don’t expect you to take my word for it. So here are five of my favourite intimate weddings I’ve shot in Old Marylebone Town Hall so you can get a proper feel for the place. And who knows? These might just be that little push you need!
Screw tradition! It’s your day, do what you like!
Before we even get to Old Marylebone Town Hall, let’s take a quick pit stop. Because having an intimate wedding means you can have the day your way. You can forget the tradition of not seeing each other before the wedding, and spend the whole day together. Wake up together, get ready together, get excited together, and go to the venue as a couple. Sounds good right? Side note: it also means you can get some pre-wedding photos!
E&J got ready together in their flat in East London. So before we headed over to Marylebone, we went for a little explore around outside and got some cool photos against the Victorian brickwork of The Bow Quarter. And just I adore the look of excitement and anticipation on their faces, knowing they’d be getting married within the hour.
H&P walked together as a family from their hotel, the luxurious Grande Dame Landmark Hotel. With sweeping marble staircases and palm trees in the central courtyard, this is a photographer’s dream. And a wonderful place to start your London elopement.
A&L arrived in a white cab (I know, right? Totally London) and had their couple’s photos around Marylebone (which we’ll come to later). It was so great to spend some time with them before their ceremony. And it meant they could be together alone as a couple before the rest of the family showed up.
Ceremony rooms in Old Marylebone Town Hall
OK, so back to the town hall. The venue has seven ceremony rooms to choose from, each one beautiful, comfortable, and insanely stylish in its own way.
The smallest is the super-intimate Paddington Room. This is basically like a fancy living room with leather armchairs and footstools, and space for only 8 guests. The big daddy of the ceremony rooms is the Westminster Room, by far the largest with space for 100.
Most have space for around 10-15 people, which is just enough to get all the important people in. But not so large you have to invite random uncle Bob.
Intimate atmosphere
All five of these weddings were either in the Pimlico Room or the Soho Room. Both with comfy chairs and sofas, gorgeous chandeliers and ornate marble and stone fireplaces.
And the atmosphere is just blissful. Quiet, romantic, welcoming. And the perfect setting if you want your ceremony to just be about the two of you and your future together, with only your closest friends and family sharing the moment.
A&L and A&S brought their children along for the ceremony. And it was so nice to see them playing in the ceremony room, having fun and getting involved. Because it made them part of the ceremony in a way you couldn’t imagine in a more traditional venue.
Wedding photography at Old Marylebone Town Hall
There’s a reason Old Marylebone Town Hall is on the bucket list of every self-respecting London wedding photographer! With its white stone walls and majestic pillars, the hundred-year-old courthouse is an architectural gem. And my goodness, does it look great in photos?!
As you come out of the main entrance after your ceremony, you’ll have the gorgeous white stone arch of the doorway behind you. Combine this with the perfect symmetry of the steps, the pillars, and the floral urns, and you get the most astonishing confetti shot! And I just LOVE Anastasia and Sandra’s shots of them dancing, hugging and kissing together at the bottom of the steps in the perfect light! Such an amazing moment.
But it’s not just about the steps and that iconic confetti shot. Take a stroll behind the pillars and there’s a wonderfully secluded space, hidden from the hustle and bustle of the London streets. With cosy white stone alcoves for you to duck into together, you can take a few moments away from your family and get a little soppy and romantic. You’re married now, after all!
But probably the most iconic photos of the town hall have got to be with the lions. I mean, you can’t not get the lions involved, can you?! Ride them, kiss them, hug them, give them your bouquet. Whatever you’re feeling in the moment, the lions just like to be involved.
Wedding photography in London Marylebone
One of the best things about having an intimate London wedding is that you get to spend time exploring the city together. And having your ceremony in Old Marylebone Town Hall means you’re right in the heart of the most beautiful part of the city. So we can go adventuring together and get you some epic couple’s portraits!
But what’s so great about the area is that within a ten minutes’ walk of the venue, there are so many different parts to explore. And so many different backdrops for your photos.
Whether you want the charming Victorian buildings of Salisbury Place, with the exposed brickwork and cobbled streets. Or the opulent Georgian buildings of Dorset Square, with majestic pillars, wrought iron railings and flagstone streets. Each is totally different. But both are quintessentially, unmistakably London.
And it’s not all brickwork and stone, either. With Bryanston Square, Dorset Square and Montagu Square just a few minutes’ walk away, you’re spoiled with lush green trees in the summer, and bright pink blossoms in the spring. Whatever direction you walk, wherever time of year, you’re only a few steps away from the breathtaking London we all love.
Looking for a London wedding photographer?
Now I have to say, I’m a sucker for an intimate wedding. I love the realness of them. The closeness. And the honest intent of two people promising to be each other’s rock for the rest of their lives. And of all the small wedding venues in London, I feel like Old Marylebone Town Hall captures the essence of this intimacy perfectly.
But there is one potential drawback. It is an intimate venue! So if you’re dreaming of a long walk down the aisle. And a hundred pairs of eyes admiring your every graceful step, then this isn’t for you.
But if the most important thing about your wedding is the person you’re marrying. If you’re willing to say ‘to hell with tradition’ and do what makes you happy. And if you want to walk out of your wedding and find yourself in the buzzing heart of the best city in the world. Well, you’ve just found your perfect venue. And hopefully your perfect photographer!
If you love my work and think I could be the wedding photographer for you, I’d be delighted to hear from you. Please get in touch today and let’s chat!
